World Autoimmune Arthritis Day WAAD - Start Talking

If you look at the funding for autoimmune diseases you see that the money allocated is unequal to the impact this group of diseases has on health and healthcare spending.  This may be due to a lack of awareness on the part of the public and the medical establishment, and also to the weak voice of those who deal these illnesses. Part of the problem is also that getting a diagnosis takes years for many of us because the tests are inconclusive.

To use statistics from the US as an example there are 50 million people with autoimmune disease and 11 million with cancer in the population.  Autoimmune disease is the poor cousin in this equation.  Cancer is estimated to be receiving $7762 million this year (2013) compared to $872 million for autoimmune disorders.   

So the number of cancer diagnoses is equivalent to 20% of autoimmune diagnoses and yet autoimmune disease gets only 11% as much money as cancer gets for research. 

  Comparison of incidence and research funding   

Cancers and Autoimmune Diseases

Musculoskeletal (MSK) disease is highly prevalent and affects 1 in every 2 people in the US.  Despite this it receives only 2% of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) budget.  Some of the autoimmune diseases included in the MSK category are rheumatoid arthritis,ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis and juvenile arthritis.

If this looks like a problem in the US imagine how difficult the problem is in countries where there are fewer resources available in healthcare and by some reports I have read, the same incidence.

For these reasons WAAD (World Autoimmune and Arthritis Day) sounds like a great idea to me.  It's a chance for people and groups with an interest in or a shared diagnosis of autoimmune arthritis from all around the world to get together and communicate online in the chat sessions or the informal chat of the lounge.  There is also a great opportunity for all of us to learn from the downloadable presentations,information sessions and blogs.

I'm hoping that we can all take information from this virtual convention and use it to spread awareness among our friends and also in the medical profession.  It would be great if our efforts to do this would spread like dandelion seeds around the world.

                        Dandelion (El Alamein) Fountain, Sydney, Australia

If you want to participate this is what you do.  Go to the site http://worldautoimmunearthritisday.org/expo/. Once you are there scroll down to sign up at the lower left. Questions will be appreciated.

Another issue around awareness and funding may be that  75% of the people with autoimmune arthritis are women who often do not 'look sick' . The variety of autoimmune diseases also works against us, but we will be stronger when we can speak with one voice.  

So let's start talking!!

Having a virtual global convention that lasts for a full 24 hours in every part of the world is a good step towards uniting our many voices.